"Comics are a cultural embarassment"

[joe_collector]

You won't hear that word from me.

 

I just find it amusing that ten's of million of American's can go see Spidey 2, while USM sales might peek above 100K per month, and we're having an argument about the *cultural importance of comic books*.

 

I think it's about time we realized that the characters long ago transcended the medium, and virtually no one in the general public gives a rat's butt about some old newsprint.

[Silver Surfer]

So anything outside of the fanboy perspective, ie: the real world, is nonsense?

 

This kind of ridiculous attitude is the reason that fanboy stereotypes exist.

 

Oh, and I didn't realize that we can only express viewpoints here that you "give a damn" about.

 

How do you interpret my comments to such an extreme? The guy wrote what I thought was an stupid article and I made my feelings known. I'm not going to lose any sleep tonight. Seems like you guys are the ones who are getting your shorts in a knot? Like I have said before, I have an open mind but I just get tired of hearing negative views and doom and gloom from certain people all of the time. Its frickin depressing.

[Silver Surfer]

Hey buddy get a new angle, its boring and nobody cares. I have an open mind but you just beat this issue like a dead horse.

 

Fanboy Alert!! Fanboy Alert!!

 

Everyone please calmly put their comics back in the Mylar. Do not panic!!

 

Hey JC why don't you change your name to chicken little?

[hobbes]

This article dosen't anger me in the least. If it did, that would imply that I needed some validation from the masses, and I really couldn't care less about outside perceptions of the hobby.

 

Perfect.

[Aces]

"Comics are a cultural embarassment"

 

While "Cultural embarassment" isn't the term I would use because it's insulting, I think most of the people here tend to agree that some comics stink don't they?

 

Aren't there people that only collect high grade older (GA) slabbed books for their wonderful covers, but will tell you the stories are weak. Then there are the guys (like me) who only collect the older stuff and don't read moderns very much if at all. Then there are the Bronze Age and up guys because the older books aren't realistic enough. Almost everyone here can point to some Age or Genre that they laugh at or are disgusted by, even if it's only the underground hardcore stuff.

 

In fact I've seen a lot of flamming about Hulk 181 and other Bronze Keys, Modern "trash", 90s dreg, and almost everything else bewteen comic collectors here that when some anti-comic snob drops a big flame bomb on all comic collectors very few folks here have any moral high ground to stand on and fight back.

 

 

ohh... I'm in a bad mood today.

[Aces]

This article dosen't anger me in the least. If it did, that would imply that I needed some validation from the masses, and I really couldn't care less about outside perceptions of the hobby.

 

Perfect.

 

Agree completely!

[DawgPhan]

he lost me when he started knocking porn-movies.....

 

Yeah porn never hurt anybody...well maybe a few people, but I think that they might have liked it a little

[joe_collector]

Hey JC why don't you change your name to chicken little?

 

When you change yours to Drooling Fanboy.

[Silver Surfer]

Hey JC why don't you change your name to chicken little?

 

When you change yours to Drooling Fanboy.

 

Sounds good to me.

[JiveTurkeyMoFo]

I don't understand the fervor generated by this opinion that comics are a "cultural embarassment". Comic books are part of the mythology of America (much like Star Wars, sci-fi, etc). All societies have had their mythological heroes for virtually all of civilized history, why the author views American popular mythology as some sort of a bad thing is beyond me.

[FFB]

You won't hear that word from me.

 

I just find it amusing that ten's of million of American's can go see Spidey 2, while USM sales might peek above 100K per month, and we're having an argument about the *cultural importance of comic books*.

 

I think it's about time we realized that the characters long ago transcended the medium, and virtually no one in the general public gives a rat's butt about some old newsprint.

 

While I agree in substance with some of what you are saying (hard to argue with verifiable circulation numbers), I think that even if the characters have transcended the medium, that does not impact whether or not comics are culturally important. Just because everyone who watches the Spider-Man movies isn't a current buyer of comics doesn't mean that the comics weren't the source of their interest in the character at some point. And if the source of their initial interest was comic books, then the cultural importance of those back issues is no less important, nor are the current issues that continue the storyline.

[joe_collector]

While I agree in substance with some of what you are saying (hard to argue with verifiable circulation numbers), I think that even if the characters have transcended the medium, that does not impact whether or not comics are culturally important.

 

We're getting mixed up on semantics.

 

I say comic books WERE culturally important, but their time has long since passed, and the characters have transcended the medium.

 

Kinda like Silent B&W film.

[FFB]

While I agree in substance with some of what you are saying (hard to argue with verifiable circulation numbers), I think that even if the characters have transcended the medium, that does not impact whether or not comics are culturally important.

 

We're getting mixed up on semantics.

 

I say comic books WERE culturally important, but their time has long since passed, and the characters have transcended the medium.

 

Kinda like Silent B&W film.

 

OK, fine, and as long as you don't say the word "crash," no chickens need perish.

[FlyingDonut]

While I agree in substance with some of what you are saying (hard to argue with verifiable circulation numbers), I think that even if the characters have transcended the medium, that does not impact whether or not comics are culturally important.

 

We're getting mixed up on semantics.

 

I say comic books WERE culturally important, but their time has long since passed, and the characters have transcended the medium.

 

Kinda like Silent B&W film.

 

OK, fine, and as long as you don't say the word "crash," no chickens need perish.

 

You know, the price of Bronze and Silver Age Spidey's have never been higher than right now. I guess they're going to come down now that the movie hype has passed.

[OldGuy]

Hey JC why don't you change your name to chicken little?

 

When you change yours to Drooling Fanboy.

 

I'm still trying to figure out when being a "fanboy" became a bad thing? I always thought of my self as a "fanboy" or "Marvel zombie". I guess I missed the memo about it being bad.

 

I really don't care what anyone thinks about comics or comic book movies. I really liked Spider-Man 1 and I'm willing to bet I'll really like 2 when I get around to seeing it. Why should I care what some guy I've never heard of that rights for a paper (or site) I'll never read thinks about comics or movies?

[Ze-man]

 

Kinda like Silent B&W film.

 

 

Please dont bring up Stamps and coins JC..

 

.I have work to do.. and dont have time to rehash our previous thoughts about how they relate to comics demise..

 

[Aman619]

yeah, but 90% of comics DO suck.....

 

Let me guess, you're referring to the 90% that you don't collect, right?

 

Nahh... just agreeing with the old saying (Theodore Sturgeon???) that

"90% of everything is dreck!"

It wasnt a value judgement on the comics YOU collect!!!!

[PovertyRow]

While I agree in substance with some of what you are saying (hard to argue with verifiable circulation numbers), I think that even if the characters have transcended the medium, that does not impact whether or not comics are culturally important.

 

We're getting mixed up on semantics.

 

I say comic books WERE culturally important, but their time has long since passed, and the characters have transcended the medium.

 

Kinda like Silent B&W film.

 

I agree with this pretty strongly. Just looking to the GA, when more adults read comics as a simple form of recreation, there certainly were wonders to behold. Science fiction images and stories, superheroes, the national unity of WWII, evolving humor, crime wars, romantic troubles etc. were all popularized by or reflected in comics. The movies, the radio and reading were incredibly popular forms of entertainment, and comics had a strong presence in all three. There were radio programs bringing weekly thrills in the form of The Shadow, Superman, Green Hornet, Batman, The Green Llama etc. Movie theaters showed weekly serials of Captain America, Superman, Batman, Flash Gordon etc. And, of course, at the core of it all, the comics and newspaper strips themselves. Compare those times (perhaps another reason to call it "The Golden Age of Comics") with today and the difference is considerable, if not extreme. And remember, we are not talking about collectors during this time, but just plain old people.

 

I DO think there is still a small cultural impact made by comics today, but certainly nothing even beginning to approach that of the GA. And today's cultural impact is markedly different, reflecting a more cynically aware, much less naive population, and much more "sophisticated" and varied forms of entertainment.

[FFB]

While I agree in substance with some of what you are saying (hard to argue with verifiable circulation numbers), I think that even if the characters have transcended the medium, that does not impact whether or not comics are culturally important.

 

We're getting mixed up on semantics.

 

I say comic books WERE culturally important, but their time has long since passed, and the characters have transcended the medium.

 

Kinda like Silent B&W film.

 

OK, fine, and as long as you don't say the word "crash," no chickens need perish.

 

You know, the price of Bronze and Silver Age Spidey's have never been higher than right now. I guess they're going to come down now that the movie hype has passed.

 

Please Donut. Think of the chickens.

 

[NewtSamson]

I think the guy who wrote the artical is a cultural embarressment